Star Trek: The Data Project
by Deyna Ian Bloom
Summary: Admiral Rose Hayes was married to Data and her world comes crashing down when he is blown up. Now, she'll risk everything she has to get Data back.
1. Chapter 1: Admiral Hayes

Okie doke, I wrote this after I first saw Star Trek: Nemesis (partly because I couldn't stop crying!) so this takes place right after Nemesis.

**-----**

**Chapter 1**

Bubbles rose into the air as Admiral Rose Hayes stepped into her bubble bath. She sighed and lathered up her neck and arms with soap. She couldn't wait until her shore leave started that afternoon. She had already planned out everything that she would do, and who she would do it with. She smiled and stood up, wrapping herself in a towel. She walked over to her bureau and picked up the present that sat there. She placed the small ceramic kitty onto the computer pad.

"Computer, please wrap this in green wrapping paper with a green bow and label it to-"

"Admiral Hayes," a voice came from Hayes's dirty clothes. She walked over to it and picked up her communicator.

"Admiral Hayes here."

"I'm sorry to bother you, Admiral, but the Council has decided to meet earlier than planned."

"I'm on my way." She set the communicator down and started getting dressed.

G----G

Deep in the heart of Federation space, the Federation Council met to discuss business. The Federation President, Jaresh-Inyo, sat at the head of the room and surveyed the group of people around him. He noted that one chair was empty and shook his head. The chair belonged to the youngest member of the council, Admiral Rose Hayes. She was barely 26, and how she had become an Admiral so fast in the first place was beyond him. He put his mind back on the meeting and started it.

"Any old business?" he said with a sigh. These meetings were always so tedious. No one spoke. "Any new business?" The room was silent. He rolled his eyes. The door opened and Admiral Hayes walked in. She started to sneak over to her desk, but the screen behind the President stopped her.

"Mr. President, sorry to interrupt you like this, but I'm afraid it cannot wait."

The President turned around and addressed the Lieutenant on the screen. "What is it?"

"The Captain of the Enterprise-E would like to speak with you immediately."

The President sat down in his chair. "Go ahead."

The screen went black, and then it showed the bridge of the Enterprise-E with Captain Jean-Luc Picard at its head. "Mr. President, I regret to inform you this, but a member of my bridge crew was killed in our recent mission with the Romulans. I request that you send me a new bridge officer to replace him."

The President noticed that Admiral Hayes had stopped dead in her tracks. "Which one of your bridge crew was it, Captain Picard?"

Captain Picard sighed. "It was Lt. Cmdr. Data, Mr. President."

The President opened his mouth to respond, but a noise behind him made him turn. Admiral Hayes had dropped her books and then ran out of the room, slamming the door behind her. He turned back to Captain Picard. "I'll see what I can do, Captain."

G---G

In the hallway, Admiral Hayes pushed her way past everyone until she was outside. Her black council robe whipped around in the breeze as she scurried down the steps of the building. She spotted the First Officer of her private starship flirting with a pretty girl in the nearby garden, so she ran to get him.

"Number One."

He turned to her. "Yes, Admiral?"

"We have to get back to our ship."

"But Admiral, the entire crew is on leave right now."

She snapped at him. "An order is an order, Number One. This is an emergency."

He nodded. "Yes, Admiral."

Within a few hours, Admiral Hayes's crew was back onboard her ship, the U.S.S. Luther. They all grumbled at their posts, but Admiral Hayes ignored it. She sat in the Captain's chair and straightened her uniform. "Number One, set a course for the Enterprise-E."

G---G

Captain Picard walked slowly back to the bridge. He sighed inwardly. He'd never felt as tired as he had in the past few days. He considered going back to sleep so he wouldn't have to face the reality of the situation, but the truth wouldn't leave his mind. Data was gone. He leaned his shoulder against the corridor wall and sighed again.

"Captain, we need you at the bridge," Commander Martin Madden's voice crackled through Picard's communicator.

"Understood." Picard continued down the corridor, putting his emotions behind him. The doors to the bridge opened slower than usual. "Number One," he said as he sat down in his chair. "What seems to be the problem?"

Madden was sitting in Data's chair. "We just received a message from a Federation vessel."

Picard hated the sight of someone in Data's chair. He waved his hand in front of his eyes to stop tears from coming. "What did it say?"

"The U.S.S. Luther has set a course for our position and they will be here in twenty minutes." Madden looked down at his board. "Make that, five minutes. They've arrived."

Picard sighed. "On screen." A silver Federation ship appeared.

An Ensign looked up from her board. "It says here that they need to beam Admiral Hayes onboard the Enterprise."

"Take us out of warp." Picard tapped his armrest in thought. "Admiral Hayes. Where have I heard that name?"

Dr. Crusher leaned forward in her chair. "She's part of the Federation Council. She was at the Council meeting that we went to last year about the Baku. She repealed the act to take the Baku off of their planet."

Picard nodded. "Oh yes." He cleared his throat. "Far too young to be an Admiral."

Dr. Crusher smiled until she saw Madden sitting in Data's chair. "Captain, there's something you should know about the Admiral."

Picard looked at Dr. Crusher. "Yes? What is it?" She opened her mouth, but was cut short by Madden.

"Admiral Hayes was transported successfully and she is on her way here."

Picard stroked his chin. "I wonder what she wants?"

A few minutes later, Admiral Hayes came to the bridge with a distraught face. "Captain Picard." She nodded to him.

"Admiral Hayes, sir. Is there anything wrong?"

"Yes, Captain. I'm afraid there is." She paused to gather her strength. "The council received your message two days ago concerning Cmdr. Data. As soon as I heard the news, I set a course for your position." She looked at Dr. Crusher who gave her an encouraging smile. "I had hoped to tell you this news during a more suitable situation, but it seems that that moment will never come." She looked down at her shoes for a second and then looked back up. "Data was my husband."

"Your husband?" Worf said. "When did this happen?"

"We met at the Baku meeting last year. You can guess what happened. In a hasty decision, we were married two days before he had to go back to the Enterprise. Except for hails, we haven't been together since then."

Picard was skeptical. "Why did we never hear anything about this?"

"Because I am a part of the Federation Council, my life is constantly in danger. I didn't want Data to be hurt on my account. But I had no business making him deceive his friends. I'm sorry for my deception, Picard. I know that Data was sorry as well."

Picard smiled and nodded. "It's alright, Admiral. I understand." He turned to Worf. "Mr. Worf, will you please put all of Data's things back into his old quarters?"

"Yes, sir." Worf left to do so.

Dr. Crusher noticed the bags under Hayes's eyes, as well as her pale skin, so she stepped forward. "Admiral, I'd like to run some tests on you, if it's not a problem."

"Of course, not. If you will excuse us, Captain."

"Certainly. Take your time." Hayes left the bridge and followed Dr. Crusher to sickbay.


	2. Chapter 2: Data's quarters

**Chapter 2**

Dr. Crusher picked up her tricorder from her desk in sickbay. She brought it to where Hayes was sitting and ran it over the woman's body.

"Admiral," Dr. Crusher started timidly. "If you don't mind me asking, did Data love you?"

"As far as I knew. Why do you ask?"

"Oh I don't know. Just curiosity. I always wondered if love was part of his emotion chip's programming. Now I can see that it was." She pressed buttons on her tricorder. "Well, it looks like you are suffering from exhaustion." She took her electronic shot out and gave Hayes a sedative. "I've given you a sedative so you can get a full night's rest. It shouldn't take effect for about 10 minutes or so." She put the shot back on her tricorder. "I will expect to see you back here in a few weeks to see how you are doing." Hayes got up and started for the door. "And Admiral, that's Doctor's orders." Hayes smiled and left as soon as the doors opened.

After a trip in the turbolift, Worf met Hayes in the corridor of the dormitory level. "Admiral," he started, "I have put all of Data's things back into his room, including his cat."

"Thank you, Commander. I appreciate it." She continued down the corridor until she realized that she didn't even know where Data's quarters were. She touched the black strip on the wall. "Computer, where are the quarters of Commander Data?"

It beeped. "Three doors down, residence hall number 270."

Hayes walked further down and went into the dark dormitory. "Computer, lights." The computer beeped and activated the lighting system. Now she could see familiar things, like Data's potted plant. She had seen it many times when her lonely husband had hailed her.

She sat down at the desk in the room. Data had sat in that chair. Her Data.

A cat scurried out of the bedroom.

"Spot!" Hayes picked up the golden kitty and hugged it to her chest. "Hey baby! Where have you been hiding?" Spot jumped from her arms and ran back into the bedroom. Hayes followed her and saw her walk over to her food bowl. Spot looked up at Hayes and meowed. "Oh, so that's it!" She laughed, picked up the food bowl and placed it in the food replicator. "Feline supplement number 25." It instantly was filled with food, so Hayes set it down on the floor. Spot sniffed it and ran away into the bathroom. "Spot? What's the matter?" Hayes could've sworn that Spot's favorite food was number 25. She sighed and pushed open the bathroom door. Spot was cuddling someone's ankles in the room and Hayes screamed when she saw who it was.

An android, that appeared to be Data, stood by the sink wearing only a towel. He saw Hayes through the mirror and turned to her.

"Who are you?" he asked. Hayes noticed that his voice had a metallic sound to it, but she pushed it aside.

"Data! Data, it's me, Rose!" She swept him up in a hug, but the android pulled her arms from his neck.

"No, no, no!"

Hayes pulled away so she could look up at him. "What?"

"I am not Data. I am B-4. Who are you?"

"I'm Rose, Data's wife."

"My brother was married?" He reached out and poked Hayes's arm.

"Oww! What was that for?"

"Are you an android?"

"No, I'm a human."

"Oh." He looked away, as if to process the thought.

Hayes scaled his covered body. "Why are you wearing a towel? Androids don't take baths."

"Oh, I was just…um…" He look behind Hayes and saw Spot. "Kitty!" He left the room to catch the scurrying cat. Hayes watched as the kitty avoided being captured and ended the chase by running under the bed in the bedroom. B-4 looked rejected. "The kitty doesn't like me." Hayes felt a wave of pity for this child-like creature.

"It's okay, B-4." She walked over to him and took his wrist. "Come here." She sat him down in a chair and patted the armrest. "Spot! Come here girl!" Spot ran to the chair and jumped onto the armrest. Hayes pet her and she began to purr. B-4 reached out to grab Spot so she started to run away. "No, no!" Hayes caught her and put her in B-4's lap. Hayes took one of B-4's hands and made it slowly pet the kitty. "Like this. Gentle." B-4 continued stroking Spot and the cat purred even louder until it jumped out of his lap. B-4 got up too.

"I have to go now." He was halfway out the door before Hayes realized.

"B-4, um, you might want to put some clothes on."

"Oh, yes. Sorry."

Paige walked into the bathroom and found a stack of neatly folded clothes in the linen closet. She picked up the top article. It was Data's spare uniform. No, she wanted to keep that. She gave B-4 an outdated uniform.

"Here, B-4. Put this one on." She picked up the rest of the clothing stack and took it with her to the bedroom while B-4 changed. When he was done, he hugged her.

"Goodbye, Sister."

"Goodbye, B-4." He left the room and waved to her before the sliding doors closed. She sank into a chair. "Computer, music. Play something by Vaughn Williams." It started to play 'Variations on a Theme by Thomas Tallis'. She spotted a row of shelves and walked to them. Leaning up against them was a stack of paintings. She picked up the first one and looked at it. On it was a painting of Lal, Data's daughter. Hayes smiled and ran her fingers over the beautiful face. "Computer, can you please put a nail in the wall for me?" She knew that the computer didn't care if she asked, but she was always nice and courteous to it.

"Specify placing."

Hayes took the painting into the bedroom and touched a spot on the wall next to the bed. "Computer, put a nail right here." A nail appeared and she hung the painting. She smiled at her work and straightened it a bit. "Perfect." She walked over to the replicator in the room. "Computer, please give me a recent picture of Cmdr. Data in a gold frame." The frame appeared and she picked it up. She turned and set it down on the night stand. Tears came from her eyes as she looked at the face in the frame. Her shaking hand tried to scoot the frame over a bit, but that made it fall off of the night stand and go under the bed. "Shoot," she grumbled to herself as she bent over to reach under the bed. The frame was within reach and she got it easily. Before she got up, she noticed a hand monitor face down at the head of the bed. She stretched further and got it also. When she got up, she put the frame back onto the night stand and sat down on the bed.

The hand monitor's screen was flashing, "Hello Rosie."

Hayes typed in her authorization code, Paige87ZetaMasque, and the message started downloading. When it was done, Data appeared on the screen.

"Hello, Rosie. If you are watching this message, I am no longer alive."

Hayes wiped her tears as the message continued.

"I know that you are wondering why I did what I did." His silky yellow eyes stared intently at her, as if he knew where her face was. "I did it to save the Enterprise, my Captain and the Federation. You of all people, Rosie, would understand that."

Hayes's tears started up again.

"Please do not cry for me, Rosie. I know that is what you are doing. I cannot stand the thought of you being unhappy." He looked away and it almost looked like he was going to cry, then he looked back. "I love you, Rosie. Please do not ever forget me." He touched the screen. "I have to go now. Good-bye, Rosie." He smiled and the screen turned off.

Hayes tried to speak, but she could feel the sedative coming into effect. As her eyes closed, she sank back onto the bed and held the monitor to her chest. With the last bit of strength she had left, she set the message on continuous play and fell asleep listening to Data's voice.


	3. Chapter 3: Holodecks and Buttons

**Hey! If you like this story, R/R or I'm gonna stop posting it!**

**-----**

**Chapter 3**

The next afternoon, Picard was getting ready for a pleasant re-treat in the holodeck. He had just gotten off duty and had brought with him a nice bottle of Scotch. As he made his way down the corridor, he unbuttoned his collar and cuffs. He sighed and re-adjusted the bottle in his arm. He needed to relax and forget the events of the past week. His thoughts were cut short when he reached the holodeck.

"Computer, run a Dixon Hill mystery. But no people this time. I want to relax."

"I'm sorry," the computer responded. "The holodeck is already in use."

"It is?" He pressed a few buttons and the holodeck screen displayed the program that was running, but it didn't tell him who was in the holodeck. "Hang it all!" He walked over to the doors and they opened. He stepped inside and found himself in a meadow of flowers with a beach over the hill.

"Computer, table #211." A simple brown table appeared and he set his Scotch and glass down on it. He scanned the beautiful setting for a black federation suit, but there wasn't one. In fact, he couldn't see anyone. "Hello? Is there anyone in here?"

Right at the bottom of the grassy knoll, Admiral Hayes sat up from lying in the flowers. She smiled. "Hello, Captain." She stood up and brought with her a basket of flowers.

Picard noted that her old-fashioned paisley dress and sunbonnet, together with her hair in a messy French braid, made her look quite fetching.

"What is this place?" he asked as he looked around.

Hayes reached him and set her basket down. "Prince Edward Island."

Picard looked beyond the hill and saw the ocean. "It's beautiful."

Hayes stood beside him and took in all of the view. "I go here to get away from it all. It helps me forget everything."

Picard grinned. "My idea of 'getting away from it all' involves Dixon Hill mysteries." They both smiled then stood there in silence for a minute or two. Picard cleared his throat. "Data sacrificed himself to save me. It was the noblest death that an officer could ask for. You should be proud of him. He saved us all."

Hayes smiled. "Thank you, Captain." She patted his shoulder. "Now, you go solve a mystery or two. Computer, end program." Her uniform came back and the room was empty and dark again. "Good-bye, Captain."

After she left, Picard picked up his Scotch and poured himself a glass. He took a swig and poured the rest back into the bottle.

"Computer, Prince Edward Island."

-----

Hayes made her way down to Engineering after her walk through the holodeck. She felt refreshed and happier than she had felt in days. Geordi was working on something nearby the warp core, so she walked to him.

"Hello, Commander."

Geordi turned to see Hayes standing next to him. "Hello, Admiral. What are you doing here?"

Hayes grinned. "Shouldn't you be on the bridge?"

Geordi looked scared. "Well, yes, but, um…" He realized from her grin that she was just teasing him. "It's nice to see you, Admiral."

Hayes walked over to the Engineering control panel. Geordi sensed that she needed some comfort.

"Data used to work here. He was a better engineer than I was."

Hayes smiled. "When I first met Data, he was helping my crew fix something in Engineering. I didn't know who he was and I got a little angry with him for being there. He explained the situation, so I let him do his work, but I stayed over his shoulder the whole time, asking him silly questions about the buttons and what he was fixing." She ran her fingers over the panel. "Never did understand all of these buttons and gadgets."

Geordi looked puzzled. "How can someone command a starship and not know how it works? You can't pass the ranks without knowing advanced knowledge of electronics."

"Actually, Commander, I was ship's counselor before I became a Captain. My knowledge of electronics is limited to what I learned at the Academy. And as for my passing the ranks without advanced knowledge of electronics, that's a long story." Geordi smiled. "Data intended to teach me everything about Engineering, but he never got around to it." Her eyes became so sad that Geordi had to say something.

"I could do it for him, if you want."

Hayes smiled at him. "I'd like that, Commander."

"Please, call me Geordi."

-----

Geordi stood next to Hayes in the holodeck. "Okay, Admiral. It's time for a test." He pressed a few buttons and started the holodeck program. A simulated Engineering deck appeared. "The warp core is overloading. What do you do?"

Hayes thought for a second then pressed a few buttons. "There!" She smiled to herself until smoke started coming from one of the walls. "Oh no! I broke it!" She hurriedly pressed more buttons and the smoke stopped.

Geordi smiled. "I'm impressed, Admiral. Even I wouldn't have been able to react that fast. You were married to an Android alright."

Hayes tried to smile, but she suddenly felt sad again. "Thank you for the lessons, Geordi."

"Any time, Admiral."

Hayes ran her fingers over the control board edge. "I'll be in Ten-Forward if you want me."

-----

Hayes found Picard on her way to Ten-Forward.

"Admiral," he said as he stopped her. "I was hoping that I would find you. I'm afraid I have some bad news." They walked to his ready-room to discuss it.

"What's the problem, Captain? Is there anything wrong with the ship?"

"No, actually, this concerns you."

Hayes looked surprised. "Me?"

"Yes, it seems that one of your crew members accidentally let it slip about Commander Data and the Council is trying you for lying about your marriage. They want you to report to them in two days."

"I see." She sank back into her chair and blew her bangs off of her face. "My ship is already back on Earth. It would take them two days to get here and two days to go back. I'll be late by then."

Picard put his hands on his desk. "If you will permit me to make a suggestion, I think I have a solution for this problem."

Hayes stopped biting her nail. "What is it?"

"Do you remember Captain Riker from the Baku meeting?"

"Yes, but I thought that he was a Commander."

"A week or so before the incident with Data, he married Counselor Troi and was promoted to Captain."

Hayes got a little impatient. "So?"

"I received a message from Riker twenty minutes ago and he told me that Troi is pregnant with their first child. The Titan has set a course for our position and they have invited the crew to beam onboard to celebrate. I know that some of the crew will resent me for saying this, but I have decided that I will beam onboard for the party and everyone else, including this ship, will be at your disposal." He straightened his jacket. "Now, how does that sound?"

Hayes smiled. "I think we have a deal, Captain."


	4. Chapter 4: Planet Aquari

**R/R much?**

**-----**

**Chapter 4**

The Titan arrived on the scene two hours later.

Picard addressed the bridge. "Alright, everyone knows the drill. Obey Admiral Hayes's orders and let me know how it goes." Hayes smiled. "Admiral, you have the bridge." He pressed his communicator. "Energize."

After he de-materialized, Hayes sat down in his chair. "Ensign, set a course for Earth. Maximum warp."

-----

Later that evening, Hayes retired to her quarters. Spot jumped onto her bed and woke her up.

"Spot! I'm trying to sleep!" Hayes ran her fingers over the kitty as she curled up into a ball next to her. "I bet you miss Data too." Hayes settled back down and put her hand on the cat as she fell back asleep.

Her communicator activated. "Admiral, we need you on the bridge."

She threw her covers off. "On my way." She quickly picked up her Federation jacket and brought it with her to the bridge. "What is it, Commander Worf?"

"Admiral, an unidentified shuttlecraft is on its way towards us."

Hayes zipped up her jacket before she sat down. "On screen." A small vessel appeared.

Worf looked down at his board. "The ship appears to be of Romulan origin."

Hayes gripped her armrests. "They shouldn't bother us. Continue our course, Ensign."

Worf grabbed his board. "Photon torpedoes! Brace for impact!"

Hayes fell out of her chair from the jolt, as did others on the deck. "Report!"

The Ensign in Data's chair spoke. "They hit our shields and life support, Admiral." He looked back at his board. "Shields at 30 percent."

Hayes touched her communicator. "Hayes to Engineering."

Geordi responded. "La Forge here."

"Geordi, damage report."

"It's not good, Admiral. The shields will come back, but our life support is damaged and so is secondary power. We need time to repair them."

Hayes sat back down. "What is our position, Commander Worf?"

"We are in a star system 1 light-year away from Romulus."

"Ensign, set a course for the nearest planet." Hayes touched her communicator again. "Geordi, we're going to the nearest planet. Can you repair the ship from there?"

"It'll be difficult, but I think we can do it."

Hayes smiled. "That's what I like to hear."

-----

The Bridge crew gathered in the observation lounge to discuss their situation.

Geordi spoke first. "Shields and secondary power is being restored as we speak, but the life support will not repair itself. I've isolated the problem, and I think we can repair it. However, the planet's atmosphere is making our tricorders not function well enough to fix the problem."

"What do you suggest we do, Commander?" Hayes asked.

"The nearest planet, Aquari, is inhabited by a primitive race, but the ship's computer has picked up traces of small electronic devices on the planet's surface."

Hayes tapped the table. "Will they repair the ship, Commander?"

He shrugged. "It's hard to say. I don't really know. They could, but then again, they couldn't."

"Well, I'm sure that you will repair it as quickly as you can, regardless."

Hayes slowly looked at everyone there: Geordi, Madden, Counselor Sorenson, Dr. Crusher and Worf. The Enterprise seemed empty and lonely without all of Her old crew there.

"You're dismissed." She got up to look out the window and heard everyone leave.

"You look distressed," Counselor Sorenson said timidly.

Hayes didn't turn around. "While I value your help, I was ship's counselor for six years. I think I can handle this."

"Admiral, I didn't stay to counsel you. I need to ask your permission to leave the ship."

Hayes turned around. "Leave? What ever for?"

"Before I was assigned to the Enterprise, I became engaged. When I told my fiancé that we were going to Earth, he asked me to resign and stay there with him."

"Why didn't you ask Captain Picard?"

"I was too afraid that he would think I was deserting him. He and Counselor Troi have put so much faith in me and I didn't want to let them down."

Hayes smiled. "I think that Captain Picard will understand."

Sorenson returned Hayes smile. "Thank you, Admiral."

-----

An hour later, the Enterprise came into view of the planet, Aquari.

"Ensign, put it on screen." The beautiful green planet came into view and Hayes was taken aback by it's alien beauty. "Commander Worf, get an away team together. All senior personnel, and a few Ensigns."

"Right away, Admiral." He left the bridge to get it done.

After the team was given appropriate clothing for the planet, they met at the Observation Lounge and then walked to the transporter room. Hayes put a phaser into her pocket as she and the rest of the away team walked down the corridor. "Alright everyone, you know the drill." Hayes didn't need to say anything, but she was nervous and her mouth was running away. "Remember the prime directive and all that jazz. So don't go talking to a pretty girl about how much you know about quantum physics." This last sentence she directed to the Ensigns. The group reached the transporter room and they all stood in their spots. "Energize." The lights flashed and the group was instantly transported to the planet's surface.


	5. Chapter 5: The Green God

**Chapter 5**

In no time, they reached the main citadel and were greeted by the townspeople. They all welcomed the new visitors in the name of "the green god."

Dr. Crusher put her tricorder on her belt so it was hidden by her pacho. "Well, at least they're hospitable."

A very distinguished looking man came to greet them. "Welcome, visitors, in the name of the green god. I am Sakow, the village leader."

Hayes held out her hand to shake, but his hands remained under his sleeves. "Thank you. I am Rose, and these are my friends."

"You are from another settlement on the planet?"

"Yes, and we need your help. Some of our implements were damaged and we need the supplies to repair it."

Sakow smiled. "Please, use anything you need from my village. We are only too happy to help others from our planet who need our assistance." He turned and spoke in a different language to someone beside him. "This is Tanen, our chief of implements. He will help you get what you need." Geordi and Worf followed Tanen to a nearby hut. "Rose, you and your lady friend must join me for dinner in the house of the green god."

"Oh, but we really couldn't-"

"Please, my people would be highly insulted if you did not attend."

"Well then, show us the way." The Ensigns stayed in the village as Hayes and Dr. Crusher followed Sakow.

Dr. Crusher walked close to Hayes as the three entered the temple. "I hope they don't drug us, Admiral."

"Set your tricorder to alert the others if they do."

Dr. Crusher reached under her pacho and pushed some buttons on her tricorder. "Done."

Sakow turned to face them. "Before dinner, you must be deemed worthy by the green god."

Hayes gave Dr. Crusher a look, then looked back at Sakow. "Whatever makes you happy."

Sakow smiled. "Right this way." He walked down another hallway and stopped at a golden green door. "This is where the green god lives." He opened the door. "If you come out alive, you are worthy."

Hayes and Dr. Crusher walked slowly into the room and Sakow closed the door behind them.

Hayes smiled. "Not very reassuring, is he?" She got out her phaser.

Dr. Crusher smiled. "Let's just get this over with." They continued walking down the corridor.

Hayes stayed alert, but tried to cover up her fear of the dark hallway. "I wonder what this green god looks like?"

Dr. Crusher played along. "Maybe he's a toad."

Hayes laughed. "Or a lizard."

They reached the end of the hallway and Hayes's heart stopped as she dropped her gun. Dr. Crusher saw what Hayes was looking at and she stood stunned as well.

Sitting on a silken throne was a perfectly re-constructed…**Data.**

-----

Hayes waited patiently for Data to move, but he remained stationary. Not even his chest moved. She took her tricorder out from under her dress and ran a scan.

"Nothing is functioning on him. No life signs at all."

Dr. Crusher was running scans as well. "I shouldn't wonder. If I didn't know any better, I'd say this was the work of a Q."

Hayes put her tricorder back on her belt. "If it was, he would be functioning properly." She touched her communicator. "Geordi, see if you can get into the village temple. There's someone here who needs your help."

In a nearby hut, Geordi picked up the electronics that he and Worf had picked to fix the Enterprise. "On our way, Admiral."

Hayes walked up to the throne. "We have to get him out of here, Doctor."

"That would make trouble, Admiral. And it would be messing with the prime directive."

Hayes reached out and stroked Data's hair. "We can't leave him here, Doctor." Tears came out of her eyes. "I won't do it. I'm not going to lose him again." She sank down and cried against Data's knee.

Dr. Crusher's heart went out to the broken woman before her. She joined Hayes on the throne steps and put her hands on Hayes's shoulders. "I understand, Admiral. Trust me, I've been down this road before." She rubbed Hayes's arm. "We'll figure something out."

"Thank you, Doctor."

"My pleasure, Admiral."

"Please, call me Rose."

Dr. Crusher smiled. "Then you'll have to call me Beverly." They both smiled and hugged each other. Hayes wiped her eyes as Dr. Crusher stared at the motionless Data in front of her. She suddenly stopped as a thought came to her. "Rose, I think I have a plan."

-----

It took a while, but Dr. Crusher relayed her plan to everyone else before they joined the women in the temple. Everyone needed a leather bag with a barrel in it. The tiny Federation group quickly joined the two women in the throne room.

Geordi gasped at the figure in the chair. "It's Data! How did he get here?"

Hayes put her hand on top of the throne. "We don't know, but the villagers are going to make sure that he stays here."

Dr. Crusher put her hand on the chair also. "Data is a Starfleet officer, and it's our job to get him back to the ship and working again."

"We're going to need everyone's help to get him out of here," Hayes said.

Geordi twisted his eyebrows. "Aren't the villagers going to notice their god missing?"

"It's possible, but we're going to try and make sure that they don't."

Worf looked at Data and then Hayes. "One question. How are we getting him out of here?"

Hayes sighed. "I hate to say it, but we have to dismantle him."

Geordi helped her take him apart and they assigned everyone a part of him. Worf got the torso, Geordi and Dr. Crusher got the legs, two of the ensigns got the arms and Hayes got the head. The other two ensigns were to stay in the town and make sure that no one noticed the missing god. They packed each part carefully into the leather bags and placed the barrels on the throne.

Geordi buttoned Hayes's bag closed. "I sure hope this works."

Hayes gently patted her precious cargo. "You and me both, Geordi. Alright, let's move out."


	6. Chapter 6: An Offer

**Chapter 6**

Sakow greeted them outside the room. "You were deemed worthy! Now you must join me for dinner."

Hayes moved her bag closer to her hip. "Sakow, I'm so sorry. Something's come up and we can't make it, but two of my friends would be happy to join you. Is that alright?"

Sakow looked satisfied. "Of course. As long as someone joins me, my people will be appeased."

Hayes nodded to the ensigns and directed everyone else out the door. On their way out, they heard Sakow chattering about his village's history of crops and such.

"Well, let's just hope that they are successful," Hayes said.

Geordi laughed. "Successful in what? Getting bored to death?" They all laughed and continued walking down the steps.

As soon as they were out enough to speak, Hayes sat down. "That was easier than I thought."

Geordi joined her. "Yeah, but we just took their god."

Hayes got up and swung her bag over her shoulder. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Until then, let's get to work fixing Data."

-----

Back on the Enterprise, Dr. Crusher relieved Madden on the bridge, while everyone else took the many pieces of Data to Engineering.

"Geordi," Hayes said, as she carefully took Data's head out of her bag. "Do you think that he's going to work now?"

Geordi snapped Data's left arm on. "It's impossible to tell." He took the head from her and put it on as well. "But we're about to find out." He lifted his tricorder and pressed some buttons, then he re-activated Data by touching Data's neck. Nothing happened. Geordi pressed more buttons on his tricorder. "It looks like his positronic matrix is damaged." He studied his tricorder results. "And maybe everything else." He turned the tricorder off and put it on his belt.

Hayes stopped biting her nail. "The reason why he's not working isn't what's bothering me. The real question is how did he get re-assembled? These things just don't happen. He was blown up."

A flash of light came up in front of them and a man appeared right next to Data.

"Kind of picturesque, don't you think?" The man had the same appearance as Data, but his face was different.

Geordi was not amused. "Q! What the hell are you doing here?"

Q disappeared and then reappeared as his regular self in front of Geordi. "Is that any way to greet your friend, my dear Geordi?"

Geordi sighed. "You're far from my friend."

Q walked up to Hayes and kissed her hand. "Ah! And you must be Admiral Hayes, the only woman in the universe brave enough to marry an android. It's so sad when they have programming problems, isn't it?"

Geordi rolled his eyes. "Q, what are you up to?"

Q didn't answer for a minute as he walked back up to Data and put his arm on Data's shoulder.

"You see, I re-assembled Data after he was destroyed. I owed the planet Aquari a favour and they asked for a god to worship. Preferably something green." Q looked away. "I detest owing people something," he said to himself.

"But why re-assemble Data? Why not just make them an idol?" Hayes asked. A flash of light covered her eyes and she found herself in a room surrounded by windows. Q sat on a throne and Data was standing next to it, still strapped down and still not working.

"Admiral Hayes, do you know what an experiment is?"

She blinked. "Of course I do."

"The Q decided to re-assemble Data to study your reaction to the three choices that I will give you."

She stepped forward. "What choices?"

Q laughed. "I knew you'd be interested. Alright, I'll tell you." He got up. "Choice #1: You can go on living your life the way you have been with only the memory of your husband to keep you going, but having no hopes of ever getting him back again." She said nothing. "Choice #2: I will give you all of the parts to your husband's hardware so you can re-assemble him for real, but only you can do it. If anyone else says anything to help you, their suggestions will never reach your ears. If they point to something, their hands will appear to be pointing in another direction. You will have only three days to fix him."

After a few minutes of silence, Hayes spoke.

"What's choice #3?"

Q smiled. "Choice #3 is a very special choice. You can only use it if you fail to do Choice #2. Choice #3: I will give you a riddle and you have to figure out what it means without anyone else's help. If you figure it out in two days, I will finish fixing Data and he will work as well as he did before he was blown up."

Hayes gulped. "And if I don't?"

"Data will be completely erased from your memory. You will not remember him and he will not remember you."

She stepped forward again. "You mean, you'll fix him?"

"Yes. He will not remember being blown up and neither will anyone else. It will be like it never happened."

Another silence followed.

"I'll take Choice #2."

Q smiled. "I knew you would."

"Then why did you give me Choice #1?"

"Just so you would have the option." He snapped his fingers and after another flash of light, Hayes found herself back in Engineering with a confused Geordi, a big heap of electronics and Data, with his back open.

Hayes picked up one piece of computer chips.

"Well, here goes nothing."


	7. Chapter 7: Ranks and parts

**Chuck: Thanks man.**

**Kevin Joe Bays: Okay, you really ticked me off and I'm sorry, but I'll try to be nice to you. First off, the story never says that Data and Hayes got married over a few days. As far as the nail goes, yeah I agree with you there. But, there has to be some way to hang a painting, and that's what I used. True, there is more than one holodeck, but I'll bet the Captain has one that he likes to use the most and besides, he was going for convenience. That one was probabley closest to his quarters. The person in the ship was Q. I haven't mentioned that yet. The final speech was her nerves, not her. They are in the Neutral Zone, yes. But, the ship's counselor had it on her mind and she wanted to get it out. And the ship thing, she is an Admiral, but she doesn't like to pull rank unless she has to. Q's experiment probabley went back to when Data was blown up. I'm not really sure, he hasn't told me yet. So, all I have to say besides that is, dude. I can tell that you're a Trekkie (or Trekker, whatever) but you don't have to get all technical with me. May I point out that Nemesis didn't make all that much sense either. In fact it tanked. But people still like it (not me though). I am a Trekkie, and I love Star Trek. But I know the fine line between writing a story for fun and writing a story just to show off my "superior" knowledge about Star Trek.**

**-----**

**Chapter 7**

The next day, Hayes sat in Engineering with Data's pieces spread between her legs.

"Let's see," she said as she tried to connect them. "The hip bone is connected to the…subtonic processor?" She sighed in frustration and fell over. The doors opened and Geordi walked in. She sat up. "Hey, Geordi." He walked up and his mouth moved while he pointed to the sky. "You were trying to help me again, weren't you?"

He nodded. "Yeah, sorry. I didn't think he would consider that one help."

She smiled and tried to piece together two other pieces. Geordi sat down next to her.

"So tell me, how does a 26 year old get to be an Admiral in the Federation Council?"

Hayes sighed and fiddled with the pieces. "Well, that's an interesting story. I was 15 when I graduated early from the Academy with special honors befitting a cadet who not only had an amazing capacity to learn, but also spent every waking moment doing homework. And to top that off, both of her parents and all four of her grandparents were already officers on Starships." She wiped her nose and continued. "I was assigned to the U.S.S. Bastion where my mother's father was the Captain. After one year, he raised me to Lieutenant. I was re-assigned again to the U.S.S. Nielo where my father's mother was the Captain. After two years, she raised me to Lieutenant Commander. After that, it was the U.S.S. Mooning with my mother's mother. After three years, she raised me to Commander. Then I was re-assigned to my father's vessel, the U.S.S. Luther. I was his First Officer, which was difficult considering that I was ship's counselor. After three years, my father's rescue ship exploded, killing him and all of the bridge crew, except for me. The President of the Federation Council promoted me to Captain himself and since my father had been considering a spot on the council, the position was offered to me. I've been on it for two years and was promoted to Admiral last spring."

"Well, that sounds pretty convincing to me. You must know more about electronics than you let on."

She threw the two pieces into the big pile. "No! I don't know anything! Don't you get it? My family promoted me! They thought that I was smart! I didn't have to take the rank tests because they thought that I would pass them! I don't know the first thing about being the Captain of a starship!"

Geordi handed her the pieces and she started putting them together again. "You should've said something."

"I know…but would you want to be the one to tell the entire Federation that your hero parents and grandparents lied? They told everyone that I had taken the tests."

"I guess the best thing you can do is try your best."

She sighed and pushed her bangs behind her ear. "Yeah well, sometimes my best isn't good enough." She moved the pieces and suddenly, they clicked together. She smiled and held them out for Geordi to see. "Hey, look. They fit."

-----

By the time the ship reached Earth, Hayes had re-assembled Data's legs and part of his hips. Madden took care of docking the ship so that Hayes could keep working until the last possible second.

Dr. Crusher walked through the hallway at Engineering dressed in her dress uniform with Geordi, who was wearing the same.

"Are you sure that she's ready to go, Geordi? She hasn't left Engineering in two days and now she's supposed to meet with the Federation Council looking like shi-" As she spoke, they reached Engineering and the door opened to find Admiral Hayes in her Council robes working on Data. "Never mind."

Geordi and Dr. Crusher started putting all of Data's pieces into a large box.

"Admiral, it's time to go," Geordi said as they finished.

Hayes reached down to pick up a piece from the box. "But I just have one more-"

"No, now, Admiral." He took her arm. "I promise, we'll beam Data down to your quarters on the surface."

Reluctantly, she followed them to the transporter. No one spoke as they walked. Hayes knew why. She was facing a court marshal and it wasn't only about her marriage. She had decided to come clean about not earning her promotions. After it got out, she would be lucky if her entire family didn't get court marshaled.

Her lifeless feet walked onto the transporter. She tugged at her sleeves and looked at the ground.

"Energize."

-----

"Admiral Hayes, after hearing your testimony, the council has decided to adjourn for two days to decide your punishment." President Jaresh-Inyo pounded on his desk. "This council is adjourned."

The room emptied, but Hayes stayed there. Her feet were standing on the Federation symbol that was engraved into the floor. She looked down at it. It had always represented her future. Now it represented her downfall.

In a flash, she remembered and ran to her quarters to fix Data. She only had a few more hours to finish him before her time was up. Various council members expressing their concern and sympathy stopped her on the way. Politely, she got away as fast as she could. She soon reached the end of the hall and got in the turbolift.

"14th floor, please." The computer beeped and started moving. The numbers lit up as each floor passed. When the lift stopped, an access panel came out from the wall.

"Please have your retina scanned, call resident on this floor, or leave the resident on this floor a message," the computer said. Hayes owned the entire floor, so she had the computer scan her retina. "Admiral Rose Hayes, acknowledged." The turbolift doors opened and she stepped out.

Her little terrier, Bloo, ran up to her and barked.

"Hey Bloo." She scratched his head and he licked her fingers. She took off her council robe and laid it on her couch. Her computer lit up.

"You have 3 new messages."

She went to the food replicator and got a glass of sweet tea. She sipped it as she walked up to Data and unloaded his different parts.

"Computer, play my messages." The computer lit up and started the videos. Hayes's hair stylist popped up.

"Hello, Admiral! I can see that you're out, so we can reschedule your re-colouring session. I noticed that you're getting a few grey hairs around your face, so when you get back, we can get rid of those."

Hayes sipped her tea and talked to the screen. "They're _silver_. Not grey." The message stopped. "Computer, delete message and go to the next one." Hayes's mother popped up.

"Hello sweetheart! I dropped by to say hello but I can see that you're not here. I'll come back later, dear."

Hayes picked up a piece and fit it to Data's hip. "Hmm, I'm getting rather good at this. Computer, delete message and play the next one." Hayes's First Officer came up.

"Hello, Admiral. I'm sorry about what happened with the council and all. If it's alright with you, I'd like to take you out to dinner tomorrow and maybe we can talk about…us."

Hayes stopped working and looked at the screen. He was still talking.

"Computer, delete message." She turned back to Data. Instantly, a flash of light was behind her. She turned to see Q leaning on her couch.

"Hello, Admiral."


	8. Chapter 8: The Answer

I know, you guys want to kill me for waiting over two years to update. My bad. A little naughty birdie discouraged me from this story and I've been busy writing other stories as well. Sowwy. Please don't kill me! I'm too young to die!!

Wow. It's been exactly two years to the day since I last updated. Weird...

**--**

**Chapter 8**

"What do you want, Q? I still have another hour."

He lifted his arm to look at an imaginary watch. "Not by my clock."

Hayes looked over at her computer's clock. He was right. It was later than she thought it was. She looked at the half-finished Data and sighed. She hadn't done it on time. Q watched her; perfectly aware of what she was thinking.

"I believe you still have choice #3."

She set her tea down on the table. "Okay, what is it."

Q blinked and Data disappeared, along with all of his parts. "Before I tell you the riddle, I must ask you a question."

"That wasn't part of the deal, but go ahead."

Q straightened up and walked to a bureau that had Data's picture on it. "Star Fleet is the only world that Data has ever known. If you get the riddle right, and I restore Data, he will face the same punishment as you, would he not?"

She hugged her arms to her chest. "Yes, he will."

Q picked up the frame with Data's picture in it. "Data worked so hard to pass the ranks on The Enterprise, and you would throw that away just to have him back? Your punishment will be fair, but his..."

"What's the riddle?"

Q put the picture back. "Did you hear anything I just said?"

"Just tell me the damn riddle!"

"Very well." Q flopped down on her couch and put his hands under his head. "Data tries so hard to be human, and yet, he is already so much like your race. But try as he may, he will never receive this one thing. Although for you, he may search his little android soul for it and he may find something like it, and in his own way give it to you." Q got up and faced her with his arms crossed.

"That's your riddle?"

"Yes," Q said with a smile.

Hayes got another glass of tea from the replicator. "It was a good effort, Q. I commend you."

"If you're going to be ungrateful, I could take my offer back."

Hayes seemed unaffected by his comment. "I will try to figure out your riddle, if you promise one thing."

"Yes," Q said with interest.

"Promise that when I give you my answer, you will not use your powers an any way to affect my answer. And no matter what my answer is, promise that you will not accept another answer from me."

Q looked suspicious. "Very well." He vanished into thin air.

Hayes grabbed her couch to steady herself. She already knew the answer.

--

The two days passed without many events and soon Q appeared in Hayes's apartment. She didn't look up from her computer, but she knew he was there.

"Hello, Q."

"Hello Admiral, are you ready to tell me the answer?"

She got up and sipped a glass of milk. "First, stop reading my mind. I want my privacy."

Q nodded. "Your mind is safe from me. Your thoughts are your own."

Hayes sighed and straightened her uniform. "The answer that I'm giving you is love."

Q looked at her for a minute or two. "Are you quite sure?"

She folded her arms in front of herself. "Quite."

"Even without reading your mind, I can tell that you're not telling the truth. You know that's not the right answer."

"I didn't say it was the answer. I said it's the answer that I'm giving you."

"I'm curious." He put his hands behind his head and relaxed on the couch. "If you know the right answer, why are you giving me the wrong answer?"

"Since it won't matter anyway, I'll tell you." She leaned on her desk. "I am about to be given my sentence by the high council. They will probably de-commission my entire family, not just me. If Data were still alive, it would include him. Data doesn't deserve that fate. If you re-make him and erase our memory of each other, he will get to continue his life on the Enterprise and I will face judgment sooner or later for what my family did."

"Why would you do all that for him, just to have him forget who you are in the end?"

Tears trickled down her face. "Because, I love him. And he gave me his heart."

Q smiled. "You knew the answer after all." He snapped his fingers and Data appeared next to him. Hayes didn't react until Data blinked and smiled. He was fixed!

"Data!" She ran to him and hugged him tight. His arms felt so good on her back and head.

"Rosie," he whispered and kissed her head. She forgot everything in that second. Then she remembered.

"No!" She pushed him away and looked at Q. "I got the answer wrong! You promised me you wouldn't accept another answer from me!"

Q smiled. "From you, yes. Old Data here answered the riddle himself after I explained that I knew you would try to get the answer wrong."

Data took her hands. "I cannot be away from you, Rosie."

Tears rolled down her face now. "You don't deserve my fate, Data."

He brushed some of the tears away. "You are my wife, Rosie. We must face everything together." He hugged her again and brushed away more tears.

Q smiled. "Reunions are so touching." They looked up at him. "Not really, I'm just trying to go with the moment." He snapped his fingers and he disappeared.

"Data," Hayes mumbled as she buried her head in his chest.

Data lifted her chin and stared into her eyes for a minute.

"I love you, Rosie."

He captured her lips in a fiery kiss.

Hayes moaned against him.

"Let's take this elsewhere," she said in a low voice.

They did.

--


	9. Chapter 9: The Verdict

**Chapter 9**

"After hearing the testimonies of all parties involved with this case, we have decided on a verdict."

Hayes clutched Data's hand and held her breath.

Her entire family was standing around them, waiting too.

"The parents and grandparents of Rose Hayes are to be decommissioned. They will no longer serve as active Federation crew."

'_What about Data?'_ Hayes thought. _'And me?'_

"As for Rose Hayes herself, she will be demoted to Lieutenant Commander and given the post of ship's counselor on the Enterprise-E. Lieutenant Commander Data will be promoted to Full Commander for giving us important information about this case and given the post of Number One on the Enterprise-E."

Hayes turned to her husband and jumped into his arms.

"Full Commander! Yay!" She screamed in delight, and then remembered where she was. "Sorry, sir."

President Jaresh-Inyo smiled at her.

"We're glad that you're back, Commander Data."

"It is good to be back, sir."

--

"Counselor, I think I need some help."

Hayes smiled, but didn't turn around.

"Oh you do, do you?"

Data stood in her doorway.

"Yes. I need help that only you can give me."

Hayes turned and walked over to him.

"Does my help require the couch, or just the floor?"

Data nuzzled her cheek.

"The couch or the floor is fine. The counter is good too."

She giggled and kissed him.

"Oh, I almost forgot. How's your brother doing on Aquari?"

He smiled.

"B-4 is having a wonderful time being worshipped and the people are thrilled that their god is now alive."

"Goody." She hugged him and they were silent for a few minutes. "Oh, I almost forgot. I have something to tell you."

She smiled.

"You remember that we got that donation from the sperm bank."

Data nodded. He was a little angry that he couldn't provide Rose with children any other way.

"Well it worked. I'm pregnant."

She jumped up and down.

Data smiled, but it wasn't heartfelt.

"I'm sorry that I cannot give you children from my own body."

Hayes poked his stomach.

"Hey, quit beating yourself up about that. It's just the way things are."

She put her arms around his neck.

"I love you," she whispered into his ear. "Now come on. Let's put my counter to good use."

--

The end


End file.
